Harold Clarke

Insights and enquiries by Professional Dialogue Practitioners at the Sixth Annual International Conference of the Academy of Professional DialogueEdited by Peter GarrettForeword by Harold ClarkeThis is the sixth book of a series under the title The World Needs Dialogue that records the insights, enquiries and first-hand accounts from the international conferences held annually by the Academy of Professional Dialogue. In 2023 the theme was Your Organization Needs Dialogue We live in an era where, from birth to death, almost everything of significance is determined in and by organizations. Yet through their structure, most organizations are inherently fragmented, with many activities determined locally but in ignorance of their inter-dependency with other activities in the organization and other organizations beyond their own. This impacts the flow of outcomes in counter-productive ways. Professional Dialogue provides a means for everyone involved to see their part in the whole. The conference explored the kind of leadership needed to introduce dialogue into an organization, the kind of culture it creates and the impact that has on decision-making, morale and the wisdom of working together in a joined-up way. Over 200 participants from 6 continents (we have yet to find a participant from Antarctica) heard from those with rich experience in the field. They also engaged one another every day in live Participatory Dialogues to deepen the considerations and find ways to benefit from dialogue in their own organizations. The Academy of Professional Dialogue is an educational non-profit charity that is actively seeking to make the benefits of Professional Dialogue available to all sectors of society. The work originates from David Bohm's insight that pervasive fragmentation in human consciousness is damaging society and impacting the state of the world. Dialogue is a proven way of addressing organizational fragmentation. The many aspects of this professional practice are considered each year at the Academy's annual conference. Please refer to the Academy's website: AofPD.org

Absent Mandate develops the crucial concept of policy mandates, distinguished from other interpretations of election outcomes, and addresses the disconnect between election issues and government actions. Emphasizing Canadian federal elections between 1993 and 2015, the book examines the Chretien/Martin, Harper, and Trudeau governments and the campaigns that brought them to power. Using data from the Canadian Election Studies and other major surveys, Absent Mandate documents the longstanding volatility in Canadian voting behaviour. The failure of elections to provide genuine policy mandates stimulates public discontent with the political process and widens the gap between the promise and the performance of Canadian democracy.

Absent Mandate develops the crucial concept of policy mandates, distinguished from other interpretations of election outcomes, and addresses the disconnect between election issues and government actions. Emphasizing Canadian federal elections between 1993 and 2015, the book examines the Chretien/Martin, Harper, and Trudeau governments and the campaigns that brought them to power. Using data from the Canadian Election Studies and other major surveys, Absent Mandate documents the longstanding volatility in Canadian voting behaviour. The failure of elections to provide genuine policy mandates stimulates public discontent with the political process and widens the gap between the promise and the performance of Canadian democracy.

Recent national elections in Canada and the United States have been exciting, consequential contests. In the 2004 federal election in Canada, the Liberal Party narrowly clung to power after a volatile and bitter battle with the new Conservative Party. In 2006, the Conservative Party won a fragile victory, replacing the scandal-ridden Liberal government. In the 2000 American presidential election, Republican George W. Bush became the first candidate in over 100 years to capture the presidency without a majority popular vote. Four years later, Bush finally attained a narrow popular mandate but only after a hard fought campaign. Then, in 2006, the Republicans suffered a stunning reversal of political fortune, losing control of both Houses of Congress, as public opinion turned massively against the president. In Making Political Choices: Canada and the United States, Harold Clarke, Allan Kornberg, and Thomas Scotto employ a wealth of new survey data to describe these elections and evaluate competing theories of party support and voter turnout. While examining various arguments, the authors contend that a valence politics model provides a powerful explanation of voting behavior in Canada, the United States, and other mature democracies.

Winner: 2001 Choice Outstanding Academic Book Award This is a book about forces challenging the continued integrity of Canada, one of the world's oldest and most admired democracies. It focuses on six critical events, beginning with the 1988 federal election and the fierce debate over the risks of free trade with the United States for Canada's economy and cherished social programs. It ends with the 1998 re-election of the Parti Qu b cois and the possibility of a third sovereignty referendum. Collectively, these events have pushed Canada to the edge of disintegration. The book's analyses and interpretations of these events are based on a unique collection of survey data gathered over the past two decades. Conversations with thousands of Canadians map the dynamics of public beliefs, attitudes and behavior in an era of economic dislocation and political crisis. Struggling to adapt its political institutions and processes to regional and ethno-linguistic cleavages invigorated by forces of economic restructuring and globalization, Canada exemplifies many of the "forces from above and below" that have beset democracies, new and old alike, in recent years. By explaining how these forces have brought a "charter member" of that very special political club to the brink of fragmentation, this book will be of interest to all those concerned with the future of democracy in polycommunal societies.